Up In Smoke*

*I couldn't think of a better title that describes cannabis and the state of artist discovery and development in 2016

I had a blast the other night appearing on the Elevate the Conversation podcast/show with @IAmDoctor420.

I'm a huge advocate for the use of cannabis as a medicinal alternative. I always have been. I think the amount of prescribed and over the counter medications that exist that are part of the pharmaceutical is such a huge business and so dangerous in long terms and in addiction, that to ignore the benefits of naturally grown cannabis to deal with the ailments a lot of the patients go to use cannabis is absolutely criminal. Cannabis is considered a class 1 drug by the DEA. That puts it in the category with Heroin, crystal Method and other drugs that are chemically created and have a dangerous effect in long term use. This alone is absurd.

Of course, the social and recreational use is a huge part of medicinal cannabis, but let's look at what we are talking about. It's not heroin. Seriously.

I have always heard the term "gateway" drug when referring to cannabis and that in itself is ridiculous. That's like saying beer is a gateway to alcoholism. These are both social and recreational substances that when enjoyed are normal. When abused, sure they can be dangerous. The only difference is you don't get in fights when medicated. You go to sleep. You don't hear about medicated driving as much as you hear about drunk driving. Shit, more people drive high on Xanax daily (pharmaceutical approved) and that's dangerous as fuck. Combine that with alcohol and you have people blacking out. You don't black out in cannabis.

The "gateway" factor comes from something deeper in someone's subconscious and issues that elevate the opportunity of addiction. But, you can't blame that path in cannabis. If you do, blame Zoloft, Paxil, klonopin, Xanax, oxycontin and every other prescribed medication. Abuse is going to happen as long as people are prescribed them and don't deal with other issues that drive them to addiction.

I grew up with a mother who had rheumatoid arthritis. I think she was on (at least) 6 different meds a day to treat various things. She didn't want to live on those. Who does? In the mid 80's I remember she was prescribed medicinal cannabis to help with certain parts of her daily pains and ailments. I don't think she stuck with it as long as someone would, but in 1985, medicinal cannabis was not understood or agreed on socially and medically. So, in the long run, she stuck with prescribed meds and drank socially. Socially of course leads to drinking daily. She wasn't an alcoholic, but defiantly drank to close out the night. Again, I don't blame her. I can't imagine what it was like to be in her body, looking at the world through limited opportunities, mostly physically. Not being about to walk, do things independently, like cook dinner for us. But she was my queen in teaching me how to do it through her. I'm grateful. I can't imagine how life would have been if the stigma of cannabis use was not so frowned upon. I think she would have had an easier time than resorting to drinking. Plus, for a frail woman, her appetite would have increased rather than not being able to eat well because of all the pills that I'm sure mixed would make you nauseous and unable to actually eat.

I've known many addicts and alcoholics in my life. I must say, it's a rare thing when you get to know one who doesn't have a story of some sort of traumatic experience that has been buried or silenced for decades that comes out eventually and they turn to substance abuse, but never has it been from smoking a joint.

I'm a casual user. If I was Cheech and Chong, I'd be Cheech. The guy that looks the part, acts the part, but when it comes down to it, is a huge lightweight. When I'm with friends, they can blaze up and I just look in amazement on what they can take down and function. I know my limits. My best friend is my Chong. She could match Snoop Dogg dab for dab. But what's amazing to me is, she's 100% aware, functional and responsible. Sure a pothead, but not the stereotypical, living in her parent garage not working and not doing anything. I admire the dedication and love she has for her job, being reliable and aware. That's today's real cannabis users. Of course the basement living stereotypes exist, but it's not all of them.

There people that I always have had a problem with that criticized and looked down upon cannabis use. I think I'm pretty safe to say that 80% of them were wine drinkers. Very judgmental while having no problem posting photos of them at a winery enjoying a Merlot or at a "classy" gathering of cheese and wine.

Well, let's compare the two.

Both come and are cultivated by the earth. Makers of wine are artists. They blend, they are scientific about it, where they grow it, weather conditions. The same can be said about cannabis growers. What they do with earth, blending and cultivating grows these plants into beautiful works of nature.

The time to harvest, the time it takes to actually get it ready, pick at the right time and prepare. Both growers are very organic and try not to grow with pesticides and harmful products to compromise their grows.

In wine, you have a Sommeliers who is an expert in wine to help you find exactly what you are looking in taste and mood as well for pairing with food. In cannabis, dispensaries have experts who go the same. What are you looking for in flavor, mood, feel and ailment.

When you open a bottle of wine, you smell, taste and have a process to judge the quality. With cannabis, the dispensary will have jars of flower that you can smell, look at under a magnifying glass to see the bud up close and see the beauty, colors and texture of the strain.

Even to the point of the enjoyment, the crafting of glass. In wine, beautiful glass is made to drink from, decanters all for presentation and use. Same is done with cannabis. Glass is blown for pipes, dab rigs and bongs. They are works of art that are useful.

So, in the end the similarities are there, but the stigma of cannibus makes these wine appreciating people superior culturally over cannibus users.

My thing about this is that is I feel like these people that frown upon cannabis users while drinking their wine is they maybe should put themselves in the place of these people that use it for medicinal purposes to aid them with an illness that include nausea, loss of appetite, migraines, fatigue, anxiety and so many other ailments people go to cannabis for... Ironically, the same side effects you have from drinking too much... Wine.

You go to a dispensary in Los Angeles and it never fails who you run into. People of all races, religions, age and socioeconomic backgrounds. It's a legitimate alternative for people. They don't judge each other while in there, the people who run these places look happy to be able to offer this service that makes people feel better. Dr. 420 was a very successful spinal surgeon prior to becoming a doctor who can give recommendation letters to grant these patients the opportunities of cannabis. He will be the first to say that it's the most gratifying thing he's ever done, because these people who come to him have been in hell for years and this is their final chance. His service is great, because in our world, the continuing stigma attached to cannabis is still frowned upon and the way he does it is not by going to Venice Beach and walking into some weird house that makes you feel like you are doing something wrong. It's over his site, he gets online with you talks to you about your issues and supports your decision. If I wasn't a patient already and wasn't sure of the decision, after talking to him, I'd be sold from feeling good about it.



The show was informative, funny and I got to talk about the music business. A few people I know watched it and thought the insight I had with regard to today's music industry and musical artistry was good. I'm far from an expert. I'm a dummy who used to be in it and has a passion for music, trends (music, technology, etc) and just wants to figure it out.

If any of this sounds of interest to you and you are tired of the olympics, the 24 hour news cycle, Donald Trump and all the other bullshit we get stuck with, watch this Interview and the others he's posted from his show. There are video versions on youtube and podcast versions.



Itunes Podcast version

He's a funny motherfucker.

You're The Reason I Can't Listen To The Same Songs I Used To

Being someone who has spend his entire adult life in a business that has pretty much collapsed, I have been in this place trying to figure out what to do on a creative level.

I worked in music, but was never a musician, so writing songs was never an option. I don't know how to craft the words into poetry like so many of the people i listen to.

Art has always been a frustrating thing for me to understand, so I learned how to admire it and appreciate it. More than anything, how to use other peoples words to create a feeling that I can share with others.

I've been doing this since i was kid. The mixtape.

Even though I don't work at a record company anymore, I still have the great pleasure to work with artists. It's consulting, managing, advising.

The real challenge this time around is that the entire world of discovery has changed. So many places to hear music, so many ways to distribute it. These are all great things, but the problem becomes that it's an overcrowded space. Not enough hours in the day to listen to everything. So many distractions to keep people focused enough to appreciate music as an experience. The Album has become a hard thing to drive people towards. Its a singles world.

The mix tape concept can still exist on soundcloud or spotify, but there is something to be said about the art of giving something you put together as a gift. The physical presentation. The manual labor behind the curating and the song selections for the mood you are trying to convey. Creating art for it, the actual physical act of handing it to someone and having them take it somewhere to listen to it.

The physical product. The chances someone will take that tactile experience and take the next step to put it on, let it run uninterrupted, just seems more personal.

With digital mixes, you can't hand it to someone. You send a link and it ends up in a cue that may or may not make it it into the playlist. This while youtube, email, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Instant Message and TMZ alerts are all pausing the experience. The mixtape (CD), you can load in your car and get lost in the songs while battling traffic or just cruising home late at night.

I recently thought about this while working with a newer act called St. Ranger. His album is special. It's an album in the true sense. The problem, like mentioned before, is that nobody has the patience these days to listen to a full album. Too many distractions. So, the idea was to hook them with a song or two to subliminally make the next investment of time to explore further. I figured the best thing we could do, was create a mixtape based on the theme of one of his songs, "Happy". Get it to the audience and encourage them as a call to action, to get involved. Make their friend a mixtape, with the theme of one of the songs from his album. So far, it's generated some movement and actions to increase the experience. Take it old school.

When I started making mixtape in school, they were always for girls. You wanted to connect with them in a way that expressed what you felt. What you wanted them to know about you. What you felt about them. I would turn people onto bands through a song sandwiched between something they knew. That song would become their favorite, then the next song would, but it was a form of communicating with someone in a subliminal and romantic way. A soundtrack to the courting, the relationship and musically document what they would share and feel.

I think my favorite documentation of this in a movie was in Say Anything. The main character, Lloyd Dobbler made it his form of expression. Being someone who would get nervous and uotknow what to say, he would make a tape to express his feelings. He would use a song to express his love (in the most iconic use of a boombox ever in film or television). I could always relate to Lloyd. I wasn't as bad as he was in expressing thoughts, but music just did it better. Plus, we had the same taste in music.

Getting back to my attempts to work out my creative thoughts, I continued to keep coming up at a loss. But, I would remember fondly on the mixtape and what it meant and what it was. I would think of the joys it would take to go through the steps of the courting a girl, the falling in love and even the break up. There was always a theme and a mood to these tapes.

There was an excitement period where you would put your 1st tape together to just "court" the girl. Get her to see how "cool" you were. Charm her with your diverse taste in music and start the hinting about your feelings.

The next one would be the "loving" tape. The one where you would get romantic and show your love for her. Show her in someones words to express how these songs make you feel about you and her. You would find the slow song... the one that would become "your song".

Lastly, would be the "break up" Mixtape. The one where you would attempt everything to get her back. You'd plead and beg for her to give it another shot. The songs would be about love, loss and hope. This was usually the tape that never got listened to because you blew it and she was done.

I always thought this would be a great movie. Something everyone can relate to. But, I'm not a writer. I just make mix tapes.

Click the links and listen to these 3 stages. If you like them, download them. Burn them, share them.

If anything, go back to that time in our life, when you showed and shared your emotions through song.

Music is a gift.

You're Sheer Perfection (Thank You)

When I read the rumor yesterday that someone had been found unresponsive at Paisley Park, I got mad that anyone would create a stupid rumor. But, in typical fashion, the rumor was proven right within 5 minutes of the original post.

Prince was dead.

I was about to start teaching a class to 6 young students who weren't even a thought in their parents minds when Purple Rain came out. Shit, They weren't a thought when Emancipation was released... But what was amazing was when I told them the news, it hit them as if it was an artist they grew up on, just as I did.

I taught my class and every 10 minutes, i would have to break my lecture to talk about Prince. But, it didn't hit me emotionally, it was more of the shock and the memories I had that related to him and his music. I actually finished the class early by 15 minutes, which is something I never do, because I like to hear myself talk... but I was out of things to say. It really was shock.

After that, I spoke to a couple friends, but still wasn't hitting me. Then every station was doing their tributes, monuments being lit up in purple, news reports, twitter comments, Facebook comments. There was no ignoring the truth.

This morning it hit me and I got to remembering why this individual was so important to me. It was the music. It was the swagger. It was the punk rock. It was the fuck it attitude. It was everything he was about.

I first heard Prince in (I want to say) 1980. My friend Nakato Mubanda, who was a few years older than me let me borrow Prince's 2nd album. We both lived in Waterside Plaza and Nakato and her brothers were like an extended family. We all knew each other from going to school together, hanging out on the plaza together, it was NYC in the 80's. She handed me the album and I remember looking at it wondering who this dude was and why was he on a Pegasus on the back? I put that album on and I don't think a week has gone past where I haven't listened to something by Prince. I still have that record. I think it's too late to give it back. plus, I don't know where Nakato is, but I love her and her brothers and thank her for our friendship to this day.

My love for Prince would only continue for the years. I remember buying Controversy and actually learning The Lords Prayer because of this album. It was kinda how i learned my times tables through Schoolhouse Rock. It needed to be something I could sing, I guess. Anyway, that album came with (like many of Prince's LP's) a poster of Prince in a bikini in the shower with a crucifix hanging on the shower tile. I thought this was the funniest thing ever and remember showing it to my mother thinking she would hate it Well, she didn't. So much for teenage rebellion. Only Prince could come up with songs, lyrics and imagery that would stick in your head forever. He was also that artists that could put such a poster in the album and both women and guys (straight or gay) would hang it up in their room.

Then of course would come 1999 and MTV. We all knew Little Red Corvette by heart and 1999 of course. But it was that double album that we would all learn word for word and play at every party. This songs introduced people to Prince, but he wasn't about only the hits. We all knew what D.M.S.R. stood for and that was an album track. Every song on this album sounds just as fresh today as it did in 1981. The man was brilliant. How many artists could write a song about the millennium 18 years the would become the anthem for the turn of the century?

Then there was Purple Rain. I remember being in Nova Scotia visiting family that summer. I had just turned 15 and the movie was coming out the following week. I made my dad take me, because there was no way I was going to miss that film the day it came out. It was a musical version Star Wars. I just watched it and felt like, what the fuck just happened. You could feel something happening to everyone there and it showed as the year went on. Prince was now a household name. The album was a classic. It was still Prince. He never changed for anyone. it was sexual, controversial, heart felt, funky, guitar heavy and pop. Nobody could do that and cross so many musical genres and gain such die acceptance from everyone.

I could go on and on about the obvious... but I feel like everyone has the same types of memories. Some additional highlights that involved Prince included... He was the only artists I camped out all night to get tickets to his 1988 Lovesexy Tour at Madison Square Garden (i snuck in a tape recorder and taped it), I got to see his purple BMW parked outside of the Record Plant everyday while Tim Palmer was mixing the debut Sponge album. During that time, found out that Prince would go in around 10pm, write, record and mix a whole album by the following morning. I actually got to see him there once. We were told not to look at him, but I was all "fuck that, I'm looking", so I did and when he saw me I immediately looked at the floor. Yes he had that kind of vibe.

I got to see him play two surprise shows at the House of Blues, one private event at Roseland, traded tapes with other fans of rarities, live shows and demos (much like the Grateful Dead fans would trade live shows), made many friends just because of our love of Prince.

I think I own every 12" he ever put out and every CD. With Prince, it wasn't about the hits. It was about the b-sides as well. There are so many songs that people may or may not know about. For example, the B-side of Mountains, from Parade was "Alexa De Paris"...an instrumental that he plays drums on that just will blow your mind. I would have posted it, but you won't find it online.

All the songs he wrote for other people that were huge, the artists he nurtured, the careers he made and the musicians he discovered... his legacy is one of a legend indeed.

I will forever miss him. Even though I wasn't into the later stuff as much, he was still and will only be the only Prince.

What other artist could be identified by a single name, a symbol and a color.

If you need me, I'll never leave
I know, that you know, without you there is no me
There is no me
Without you there is no sea
There is no shore
Love is to weak to define how much I adore
You, child
You, child
The last words you hear

Goodnight, Sweet Prince.